Phil Yoon Posts

With the Super Bowl over, and another AFC Champion, the Chiefs look back on another season of "what could have been." There were certainly plenty of lows: the offense went down several notches, perhaps in large part due to Willie Roaf's sudden retirement; Trent Green went down in the first game of the season and never looked the same again; they lost heartbreakers in Cleveland and Miami, ruining their chances for a high seed in the playoffs; once in the playoffs, the Chiefs embarrass themselves with a forgettable offensive performance; and Lamar Hunt, their beloved owner, passes away without seeing his Chiefs raise the trophy that bears his name.

But a playoff team cannot have a season full of lows, and indeed there were many highs for the Chiefs. After barely missing the playoffs last year with a 10-6 record, they get a lot of luck this time and make the playoffs in Herm Edwards' first year; they have their most productive draft in years, with rookies Tamba Hali, Jarrad Page, and Bernard Pollard playing major roles, and Jeff Webb and Brodie Croyle looking like solid projects for the future; Larry Johnson proved to be a workhorse, seemingly carrying the ball 50 times a game without tiring; Dustin Colquitt proves that punters can be drafted in the high rounds, becoming a new weapon for the Chiefs; the defense becomes no longer a laughingstock, showing a toughness and attitude Chiefs' fans haven't seen for years; and Tony Gonzalez re-signs, guaranteeing that he will be a Chief for the foreseeable future.

Sure, the Chiefs have a lot of question marks going into next season, and the QB situation looms large, but the improving defense means that the Chiefs should at least be playoff contenders next year. The Chiefs finally had some breaks go their way this year; with a few more breaks next year, perhaps the Chiefs can actually win a playoff game for the first time in 13 years.

And with that, Jon and I bid farewell to the Fanhouse gang. We will be moving back to our original home, MVN.com. It has been an honor serving as the original Fanhouse bloggers for the Kansas City Chiefs, and we wish the revamped Fanhouse much success. We hope you have enjoyed reading our material as much as we enjoyed writing it.

Maybe Herm Edwards doesn't like to watch the Super Bowl, but he sure likes to talk about it. Edwards wrote a guest commentary in the Kansas City Star entitled: "The Colts Are Here Because of Defense." As always, Edwards got directly to the point:

Defenses win games. I keep telling people that, and they don't believe me.

When you look at the playoffs, that's what won it for these guys, is their defense. Both teams have played good defense in the playoffs. Both of them had shootout games, too. Lovie (Smith) and those guys had a shootout game against Seattle, and Tony had a shootout game against New England. But in the other games against us and Baltimore, they played good defense.

Edwards then goes on to, for all practical purposes, write a Colts love-fest. I know Edwards is close friends with Tony Dungy, but his commentary was basically an early Valentine's Day love note to the Colts' defense.

Edwards probably shouldn't quit his day job anytime soon, either. He concludes his commentary by saying:

Peyton is playing better. It was just a matter of time because he's that kind of quarterback. To me, a key for both teams is special teams because they both have good return guys. And then how (Rex) Grossman plays against those guys. If he doesn't turn the ball over, they'll be in the game. If he turns the ball over, that's not good.

Not exactly Pulitzer material there.

Sometimes, you just hate to see a player leave the team with whom he started his professional career. In New York, Yankees' fans are languishing over the fact that Bernie Williams is unlikely to return. In Detroit, Steve Yzerman leaves as one of the biggest legends in a city full of legends.

And then there is Ryan Sims.

Longtime Chief, yes. Bigtime bust, definitely.

Sims' whopping statistics as a Chief:
2002 thru 2006: 59 games, 64 tackles, 10 assisted tackles, 5 sacks, 1 interception.


Yup, these are the numbers of a 6th overall pick. Barely a tackle per game, one sack per season. Granted, defensive tackles rarely have sexy stats, but it's hard to put a good spin on these numbers. Especially when that player signed a $25 million contract before his rookie year. Especially when the Chiefs traded up to get him.

In what might be the only time I'll ever cite an MTV article, we find out that Jay-Z is destined for the NFL Hall of Fame.

Say what?

Oh, that clever MTV. Jay-Z himself, or any caricature of him, won't be there; instead, he's credited as one of the designers of Larry Johnson's Reebok S. Carter cleats, a pair of which Johnson is donating to the Hall to commemorate his record of most carries in a season.

Why MTV felt the need to point this out, I'm not sure (and I suppose I'm not exactly helping matters by writing about it). Firstly, why the Hall wants anything to commemorate a record of "most carries" is dubious in itself. Secondly, what's next, MTV claiming ten years from now that Paris Hilton is headed for the Hall because Peyton Manning accidentally loaded one of her songs onto his iPod before the Super Bowl?

On a more serious note, it is rather amazing what a difference a person makes. Priest Holmes, by most measures, had better individual seasons than Johnson's 2006 season, yet Holmes did not garner nearly the attention that Johnson receives. Johnson is becoming a major force in the marketing world, having become one of Roc-A-Fella's most significant spokepersons. That should mean more attention for the Chiefs, who usually grace the offseason sports wires as often as Beyonce performs in pants.

Is that good or bad for the Chiefs, who typically like things quiet? If it means that stars like Johnson will be distracted, then that's a negative. But if players won't feel hindered in garnering endorsement opportunities by going to Kansas City, then that's a positive. Either way, next time you go to Canton, when you see LJ's cleats, be sure you proudly point out that you own the album of the-guy-who-designed-the-cleats-of-the-running-back-who-broke-the-record-

for-most-carries-in-a-season.

Over at Arrowhead Pride, Chris is running a series of his five most disappointing Chiefs in 2006. #4 on his list is Dante Hall, who only a few years ago was perhaps the biggest hero in Kansas City.

Loyal readers of this blog know that I don't put all the blame for his struggles on Hall himself. As I have maintained, Hall is someone who is at his very best running at full speed in open space. When he has to juke the initial tackler, Hall has trouble accelerating again, allowing defenders to catch up to him easily.

In many ways, the questions surrounding Hall are the same as those surrounding Trent Green. Do you gamble that Hall can be an impact player again because the circumstances surrounding his decline in 2006 can be fixed, or do you let him go and start anew? With Green, his main problems are age and the after-effects of the concussion. With Hall, his problem is his inability to adjust to the blocking scheme and personnel.

Plenty of blame has to go to the special teams unit, since kick and punt returners should not be confronted by would-be tacklers immediately after catching the ball, but Hall's style is about the worst fit for the Chiefs' current special teams unit. It is easier to replace one returner than to fix a whole unit of blockers. As much as I root for the guy, it might be time to let Dante Hall go to a team that can take full advantage of his skills.

Ladies and Gentleman, I realize that I am perhaps stating an unpopular sentiment when I say that the State of the Chiefs is good. Some may think that the Chiefs are headed nowhere but down. Some may think that this year's playoff appearance was pure luck. However, in the coming days, I believe that Jon and I can convince you that the Chiefs are going to be OK.

We have heard your concerns, and we don't disagree with all of them. In the coming weeks, you will hear Jon discuss the Chiefs' need for a wide receiver or three, offensive line issues, what changes might be needed on defense, and of course, the most popular topic of all, the QB situation. You will hear me disagree with him on some of those issues, and also address speculation of some key Chiefs' figures considering retirement.

However, we will also discuss the positives-- what went right and will stay right, and what is immediately correctable. I would particularly like to point out a couple of special guests-- from the esteemed Pennsylvania State University, Larry Johnson and Tamba Hali, who will help to lead an infusion of youth on the team. [applause] This is a trend that will continue.

Although Coach Herm Edwards has faced some criticism this year, I stand by him. Coach Edwards has a vision for this team, a good vision, and I will give him the time he needs to see his vision come to fruition. As long as Coach Edwards is not afraid of change, and he has shown that he is not, I expect to see his enthusiasm yield results as soon as next year.

There are many problems to address, to be sure. But rest assured, this administration will diligently search for answers and address them. We look forward to the upcoming days, when we will seek to justify our opinions, as we all seek one common goal-- to see the Chiefs win a Super Bowl.

Thank you.

In my opinion, one of the most underrated players in Chiefs' history is Tony Richardson. Fullbacks rarely get any glory, but Richardson deserved even more glory than his fellow fullbacks. Once thought to be their 1,000-yard running back of the future, Richardson became an exceptional blocker when Priest Holmes came to town. Watch tapes of Priest Holmes at his best, and you could see the enormous faith he had in Richardson. It was almost like watching a puppy following his owner. Larry Johnson also trusted Richardson immensely, though perhaps more as a mentor than lead blocker.

But not only was Richardson a terrific run blocker, he was also a fantastic pass protector. While Trent Green has been blessed with an elite offensive line, his last line of defense was often Richardson and Holmes, which was kind of like having dragons at the drawbridge if you managed to cross the moat. On top of that, Richardson was a decent receiver, usually dependable as a dump-off option to gain a few yards. The fullback's role in the Chiefs' offense may have diminished over the years, but Richardson's presence was still felt.

Richardson's importance was especially noticeable this year. With the Chiefs deciding that $2.5 million over 2 years was too expensive to keep Richardson, they started the season with Ronnie Cruz at fullback. I didn't think Cruz was all that impressive, though he had limited opportunities to show off his abilities. After Cruz was lost for the season due to injury, Kris Wilson filled the role. Wilson proved to be an effective pass-catcher, but he wasn't able to pick up blitzes that effectively. In my opinion, the overall pass blocking of the offensive line slipped because neither LJ nor Cruz or Wilson were effective at picking up the blitz.

Now Adam Teicher of the Kansas City Star is speculating that Boomer Grigsby might be preparing to play fullback next year. That's right, the backup linebacker. Remember how, from 1999-2005, the Chiefs never had to worry about who was at fullback? Those were good times, weren't they? Now the Chiefs might rely on a backup linebacker to play the position. Somewhere, Daryl Johnston is cringing.

Every offseason for the past several years, Chiefs' fans have clamored for change. Changes on defense. Changes at wide receiver. Changes within the coaching staff.

But never the offensive line. Why would they have to? For years, the Chiefs boasted the best offensive line in the league, made up of veterans who were still in their primes.

Last offseason was a taste of something slightly different. There were worries that Will Shields would retire, but not many people seriously expected him to retire. It wasn't until training camp that we all of a sudden learned Willie Roaf would not return and John Welbourn purported to retire.

This offseason is completely different. The offensive line was not particularly dominant, and was downright bad at times. The only surefire starters are Brian Waters and Casey Wiegmann, and Shields' potential retirement is more realistic now.

By most accounts, left tackle is the most worrisome position. Although I felt that Jordan Black played fairly steadily for most of the year, he is certainly not Willie Roaf, and his performance in the playoffs was, shall we say, regrettable. Further, I have opined previously that the Chiefs did an awful job this year of picking up blitzes; one has to wonder if that was the case because there was more help assigned to Black, rather than in detecting blitzers. The Chiefs appeared to have been grooming Will Svitek for the job, but Svitek was extremely raw as a rookie and missed most of this year with injuries. Kyle Turley simply cannot be an option anymore.

One reason why the Chiefs have struggled to make the playoffs in the last 10 years is because they have drafted relatively poorly. While they have uncovered some gems in the latter rounds, their overall record has been poor, both in terms of short-term and long-term returns.

With all the talk about Herm Edwards changing philosophies, one aspect that has been overlooked is the success he had with this year's draft. As I contemplated doing a series on the Chiefs' recent draft history, I read with great amusement this assessment of the 2006 draft, which basically says the Chiefs would receive no help from the draft class this year.

Oops.

The author, Scott Wright, couldn't have been more wrong in his assessment, and it all starts with the guy pictured above, Jarrad Page. In fairness, Wright had no idea that the Chiefs would sign Ty Law, but this year's draft class turned out to surprise everyone with the impact they made on the 2006 Chiefs. With that in mind, let's review the Chiefs' draft history in this millenium, starting with their 7th round picks. Following each pick is a long-term assessment and short-term grade (based on expectations versus performance).

2006: Jarrad Page

Typically, 7th round picks don't do much and aren't expected to become much. If they can make the team, it's usually as a special teamer. Thus, Page's ascent into a major contributor for the Chiefs is truly an amazing story. Going into the draft, Page was considered a physical safety without exceptional coverage skills or instincts. However, Page turned heads in training camp, and when given opportunities he took full advantage. His pass coverage skills turned out to be excellent, to the point where he was used extensively in obvious pass situations. His coming out party took place at home against Oakland, when he made a huge interception of Aaron Brooks on Oakland's last play of the game and sealed a victory for the Chiefs. Page finished the season with 35 tackles, 1 sack, and 3 interceptions, and is widely expected to displace either Greg Wesley or Sammy Knight as a starting safety next season.

Short-Term Grade: A
Long-Term Expectations: 2007 starter

Looks like the rumors were true, or at least half true. Terry Shea has been fired as the QB coach for the Chiefs, according to Len Pasquarelli of ESPN.com.

As I indicated before, the firing is a bit of a surprise to me, because if there is a goat to scape, Shea seems to be an odd choice given his good work with Damon Huard this year. There is no indication yet as to who the new QB coach will be (as ChiefsPlanet speculated earlier, Mike Shula may be in the mix, but those rumors have died down a bit), but Pasquarelli suggests that Edwards is looking for a coach to help implement a vertical passing game and shift away from the Coryell offense.

Of course, the Chiefs thrived with the Coryell offense the last several years, so some fans may cringe at the thought of moving away from that philosophy. However, that offense not only depended upon, but actually required a stellar offensive line. Average, which was what the Chiefs' line was this year, does not suffice. Edwards and Mike Solari seem to recognize this fact, and because there is no guarantee that they will have an elite line next year, they are not only going to call plays around Larry Johnson, they are going to design plays around him.

Overall, Shea has a bit of an inconsistent resume, but I think his overall status in Chiefs' history is a positive one. He helped Trent Green become one of the top QBs in the league despite a lack of wide receivers. He helped Damon Huard achieve extraordinary success despite Huard's not starting a game for several years. I don't think you will see Shea in the unemployment line for very long.